Future Rangers
by RangerMarie
Summary: Marie Shallows, a former ward at Redmont Castle, has finally been granted her wish, to be apprenticed as a Ranger. But neither her, nor her best friend Rosen, who was apprenticed with her, could have ever expected the dangers they would have to face.
1. Prologue

General Rowe was an impatient man, and all this waiting had him boiling to the brim. As commander of the army, he should have had no wait in seeing the King at this time, but it seemed that King Agriba, a prideful and self-centered noble, enjoyed angering his lessers, just because he could. And that was exactly what he was doing.

Finally, after a long while of waiting, the general was allowed to enter the room where Agriba was waiting. The throne room was large, with an elaborately decorated seat for the king. King Agriba was...well, he was fat. He was also very short, which made him look particularly strange in the uniform that he preferred to wear. The little man stood, holding out his hands to the tall and skinny war leader before him.

They were a strange-looking pair; General Rowe was completely balanced, like a professional swordsman, and had a grim expression on his face. King Agriba, on the other hand, jiggled as he walked toward his comrade, swaying under his own weight. He looked up at the towering Rowe, smiling, and led the commander to the front of the huge room.

"Well, old friend, it is good to see you here." the overweight king said as they walked. The general raised an eyebrow.

"Are we friends?" he asked solemnly, without even a trace of humor. Agriba nodded eagerly, never letting the grin slip from his face.

"I should hope so, General. After all, I am the king and you are the captain of the army, and as we are about to take over a country together, it would be well suited if we were." he explained. Rowe said nothing. He didn't say it aloud, as saying such could get him executed, but he wouldn't be Agriba's friend even if the king had saved his life, which, of course, he hadn't.

Agriba stopped in front of his throne and snapped his fingers at a guard. Immediately, the soldier exited the room, returning with a simple wooden chair. He placed the chair on the ground behind General Rowe, bowed, and returned to his place. King Agriba gestured to the wooden chair, taking his own place on the large cushioned throne. Rowe glared through slit eyes at the self-centered king. Soon, after the general and his army took over Araluen, Rowe would sit on that risen throne, not Agriba. He would be the most famous ruler in the world, the only one to ever take over the all-powerful Araluen.

As soon as General Rowe was seated, and the king had wriggled his fat behind onto his tall seat, which had been designed for tall leaders, as kings were expected to be, Agriba began to speak.

"So. What a pleasant meeting we are to have here. What is it about, again?" he said, smiling at the man seated below him. He knew what the meeting was for, of course, but he wanted to see the commander's reaction. General Rowe furrowed his eyebrows briefly. Then his face cleared and he replied calmly.

"Araluen, my lord." he answered, and the words seemed to clear Agriba's memory.

"Ah, yes, that nasty little country. Oh, I'd love to see the looks on their faces when they are defeated. Yes, that will be very good." This was the one subject that Rowe agreed with his king about. Araluen was a small island country filled with ignorant people, and at the time, of all the known countries, Araluen was the most powerful. It held successful treaties with many of the surrounding countries, and even farther ones as well, such as Nihon-Ja. Most of these treaties had been the result of three Rangers; Halt, Will, and Gilan. In fact, the famous Rangers Will and Gilan were both the former apprentices of Halt.

The urgency of taking over Araluen had recently become more important, for those three Rangers had just begun the apprenticeship training of three youth. If these apprentices became as skillful and famous as their masters, defeating Araluen could become impossible.

General Rowe only nodded in reply.

"Our spies have reported that Rangers Halt, Will, and Gilan have each now accepted an apprentice." Agriba said, and Rowe nodded once more. He knew as much. But the king was not finished. "This is a special case, however." he continued. "Two of these three new apprentices are girls. The first girl Rangers ever. If they are really good enough to be accepted, they must be truly excellent. I have a feeling that they will not be the cowardly type that we are used to."

Rowe started at this. He had had no idea that any of the youth that they were worried about were girls. He smiled slyly. Despite what the king had said, he felt that assassinating two girls and a boy would definitely be less work and trouble than three boys. Agriba was obviously becoming a bit paranoid.

Now all they had to do was organize a distraction, capture Halt and Will, and send two assassins out to do the killing. One for King Duncan, the Araluen king, and one for Gilan and the apprentices. Then he and his army would attack Araluen and without its main defenders, the little country wouldn't stand a chance. Easy.

"This job is simple." the commander explained. "All we need to do is capture Halt and Will, hold them for ransom, and kill the others."

"And how will you be doing this?" Agriba questioned. General Rowe shrugged.

"Even simpler. I have a copy of my plan here with you for you to look over." he stood to hand the king a folded sheet of paper. Agriba unfolded it and Rowe sat back, relaxed. Any other general or officer might be anxious as to what his king might think of his idea, and whether it was approved. Not General Rowe, however. He knew that Agriba would accept his plan eagerly, having no plan whatsoever, and knowing nothing of battle strategy. He was correct.

"Very good, General. Please carry out these plans. When are you leaving with the army?"

"Next month is my plan. That way the apprentices with only have had a few months of training. Surely this will not be enough time to fight Bazzar properly." was Rowe's reply. Bazzar was the assassin assigned to kill Gilan and those three young ones. He was the best assassin in their massive home country of Rolque, followed by Donn Norder, who had been ordered to kill King Duncan. There was no way that either of them would fail, even if the task was hard. They were born killers.

"Excellent!" Agriba cried, clapping his chubby hands together. "Soon I will rule the world!"

Not for long, General Rowe thought. I am the rightful leader of this country. Every one knows that. Soon it will be I that takes over the small, but strong, country of Araluen.

And with that, he turned and left the room, thinking over just how successful his plans would prove to be. Surely, not even the famous Rangers could escape Bazzar and Donn Norder. After all, they were undoubtedly the most skillful assassins known to man...


	2. Chapter One

"I love fair day. It's so much fun!" Marie exclaimed excitedly, skipping through the town beside her friends, who were half jogging to keep up. Hoards of villagers and farmers crowded the streets; all laughing, talking, eating and enjoying the many colorful sights. Marie looked at it all eagerly. Fair day was truly wonderful in her opinion. For one, all the apprentices, her and her friends included, were given the day off to enjoy themselves, providing the five wards with a chance to tell each other about their first few weeks of apprenticeship. Second, a traveling fair was paid by the Baron Arald himself to set up in the village. Overall, it was a great day to celebrate.

It was a pleasant afternoon, the sun shining brightly across the early fall sky. Golden leaves fell lightly from the trees and squirrels raced merrily about, collecting the last nuts of the year before everything snowed over in a few months. The fields of golden grain shone husky shades of gold,ready for harvest. Ripe apples gleamed brightly in the sunlight and Marie reached up and pocketed one for her shaggy black horse,Finn.

The five apprentices were currently headed for Jenny's restaurant, a local diner in which, Jenny, the head cook, often gave out free samples on fair day. Marie's favorite was the delicious pastries with sugar dusted so light that it melted before you could scarcely taste it.

Marie twirled around to face her friends. "Come on!Hurry, before they're all gone!" And with that, she raced away. There was no doubt about what she was talking grinned and took off after her friend. Lightweight and energetic, she easily ran through the packed streets Soon she was beside Marie and the two of them ran as fast as they could, each trying to get ahead of the other. Marie knew that Rosen was faster, however. The two of them reached the restaurant, panting, Rosen a few moments before her friend. They sat, exhausted on the ground and waited for their friends, who were still walking, to catch up.

Gideon, tall, muscular, and in all ways warrior, walked slightly ahead of the others, as his stride was much longer than any of theirs. He walked with a spring in his step, and they could see that after only a few weeks of battle school, he was already a compatible warrior. Lilly followed, graceful in her flowing couriers robe, smiling and compassionate. Last was Jack, tall with tousled (red? please?) hair, who was, as always,distracted and staring into space, undoubtedly going over a new contraption idea. His whole life seemed to be about new inventions, when he wasn't crafting sculptures out of his lump of clay.

Finally, when the three slowpokes had caught up with the girls, they entered the restaurant together, smiling as they inhaled the sweet smells from the kitchen. It was filled with hungry customers, yet Jenny was instantly beside them. She and the former wards were good friends, and used to visit her restaurant often on Saturdays.

"And what would my favorite wards be interested in today?" she said with a bright smile. "Although I can't really call you wards anymore, can I? I heard you all got the apprenticeships you wanted. Congratulations!" The apprentices smiled back at her. Jenny was not tall, but her bright blond hair and cheery approach to life made her stand out in a crowd.

"We'll have whatever is available," Rosen began. "Although, if you could bring a few of your famous pastries, please do." They all eagerly leaned forward.

Jenny's pastries were, indeed, famous. Jenny made them by hand herself, and she was recognized as the best cook in the fiefdom, even more favored than her mentor, Master Chubb, who was the Redmont castle head cook, and a professional at the job. As Jenny brought back the powdered pastries, along with enough meat for all of them, the five friends grinned and licked their lips. The food was truly to die for. There were several moans of pleasure and sticky fingers. After the friends finished their food, they sat around the table and conversed quietly, telling of their first few weeks of apprenticeship.

"The sword drills get tiring and repetitive after a while, but every time we do it, I get better and better, so overall, I like it." Gideon was saying, describing the life of an apprentice warrior. "But my favorite part is the duels, when you get to duke it out with a partner until they surrender, using practice weapons, of course. The others nodded, easily envisioning Gideon, with his sword flickering at his opponent. "What about you?" He asked Rosen. Her face flushed with excitement as she thought about the past few weeks.

"Well..."She began.

"Its awesome!" Marie jumped in. "Halt is showing me how to throw knives and use the double knife defense. Its where you-"

"Use your saxe knife and throwing knife to block a sword stroke. Except on the edge of a cliff." Rosen interjected, shooting a defiant look at Marie.

Marie sniffed. "He's also teaching us how to blend in and sneak around unseen and-"

"Unheard." Marie glared at Rosen, who smirked. The rest of the apprentices fell silent as the two apprentice rangers glowered at each other until Jack started to laugh.

"You're crazy!" He chuckled. "I have the best job. Not only do I get to mess around with metal all day, At night, after we close up shop, Pearce helps me with my inventions. There's this one that we're working on now..." He drifted off, gazing into space.

Lilly giggled. "Jack? Are you there?" He jumped.

"Yeah, sorry. I was just thinking... Hey,so how's the life of a courior? Pretty exciting Huh?" Everyone chuckled. Couriers carried messages around Araluen, and went on diplomatic missions.

"Actually," Lilly replied, a perfectly serious expression on her face. "It is exciting! Did you know that couriers are often used undercover on assignments?"

"Yeah, like Alyss." Rosen said thoughtfully "Will told me that once." They sat quietly, listening to the bustle of the restaurant, their conversation used up.

Lilly, a true diplomat, broke the silence. "Come on, you silent lot, let's go have some fun. After all, Fair day only comes once a year, don't it? So why don't we use that time?"

The others stood quickly and left the restaurant, making sure to wave to Jenny as they went. As soon as they were out of the building, Marie turned to the others.

"Now, are you going to stand there and do nothing or are you going to hurry up and catch us?" she said. Laughing, Marie and Rosen ran in two different directions, Marie dashed farther down the road to the right, and Rosen back up left,the way they came. Startled, the others stood frozen in one spot for a moment before they took off; Gideon back up the road after Rosen, and Jack and Lilly after Marie.

Gideon was light on his feet and quick, but Rosen was quicker. Added to the fact that Rosen was faster, she was excellent at turning unexpectedly down other streets and hiding in the shadows of the village houses. Because of this, Gideon lost sight of his friend several times and had a hard time finding her again. This was the point, of course, and Rosen and Marie loved it, the game being similar to their training. Of course, both boys were faster than Marie, but like Rosen, her main advantage was the ability to make sharp turns and blend in with the moving shadows.

Jack stopped as he lost sight of Marie,a fluttering cloak disapearing rapidly down a strange street, with Lilly following behind him. "Where is she?" Lilly asked, and Jack shook his head, too exhausted to speak. He'd been trailing his fleeing wardmate for several minutes now, and it was beginning to wear him out. He wasn't a big runner, and he wasn't as fast as Gideon or Rosen, but he could, in a full-out sprint, outrun Marie. Unfortunately, this was not a regular race. This was a chase around the village, with no designated start, end, or most importantly, route. Marie and Rosen never knew where they were going, or where they would end up, but neither did the others. It was like a game of tag; an extended and rather difficult game of tag.

Finally, Jack and Lilly resorted to a search. They would wander the village until they saw a glimpse of either Rosen or Marie. Then they would run as fast as they could to catch up. It was a long process,further hindered by the river of people, but it was better than giving up. To do so would show as a sign of weakness and laziness, and that was something that none of them were.

Marie crouched, panting softly, behind a shed at the far side of the village. She stood slowly, waiting for her breath to recover, and looked curiously into the window of the small shack. There was a bed in one corner, and the rest of the room was scattered with boxes and so much clutter, there hardly seemed any room for the occupant to step. Marie's curiosity grew, and she peeked into the window of the adjoining house. Shelves lined the walls, and they were stocked with gleaming swords and shining figurines. She saw a figure inside, and quickly gasped and knelt on the ground beneath the window. This was the blacksmith's shop, where Jack now worked and lived. The shed behind which she had been hiding must be where he slept. And the man in the window had to be Pearce, the blacksmith.

Marie searched for another cover. She wouldn't take the chance that Jack might search here for her. A few houses down, an upside down wagon with only three wheels lay, forgotten. It was of a reasonable size, and so would easily fit her inside, with plenty of room left over. Marie crept quickly over to it, staying behind the village houses instead of in front. As Marie closed in on the wagon, she heard a voice and stopped.

"Marie." it whispered. Marie spun slowly in a circle,scanning with her eyes, but saw nothing. "Marie, over here. Come on, before Gideon sees us. He's just on the other side of the house." Rosen reached out a skinny arm and beckoned her best friend to join her,"Marie." it whispered. Marie spun slowly in a circle, but there was nothing. "Marie, over here. Come on, before Gideon sees us. He's on the other side of the house." Rosen reached out a skinny arm and beckoned her best friend to join her, cloaked by the shadows. Seeing where Marie was headed, she added: "You'll never reach that wagon before he sees you. We aren't full Rangers yet, remember."

Marie nodded and slowly moved beside Rosen. "How close is he?" she asked, her voice barely audible. Rosen peeked around the corner of the house to be sure. Then she answered in the same low tone.

"Front of the house, A few meters out. Saw me coming in this direction. Might be a few minutes before he leaves." she said out of the corner of her mouth, not trusting herself to say more than was necessary. If Gideon found them, he would tease them about failing to a mere warrior apprentice for the rest of their lives. Well, maybe not. Still, it would be very humiliating to be found now. Marie and Rosen held their breaths until Gideon left; maybe he was tired of waiting, or he thought he saw a glimpse of something farther ahead. Sure that he was gone, Marie let out a deep breath and smiled.

"That was a close one, don't you think?"

Rosen nodded, grinning. If this had been before they'd been apprenticed, the two girls might have been spotted already. But thanks to Halt and Will, their mentors, the best friends had already learned many useful skills over the past few weeks, including the one they'd just used to their advantage. _If you think you've been seen or heard, stay still and wait it out; don't move or whoever it is will see you immediately._ was something Will often said. Halt, however, who was taciturn and rarely smiled, enjoyed correcting barely noticeable mistakes in the girls, especially Marie, his own apprentice. The girls hung on every word of their advice, however, knowing that because they were the first girls to be apprenticed to a Ranger, the competition was great and the standards higher.

Now, they looked at each other and nodded silghtly. At the same moment, both girls shot off in opposite directions. It was an action that had been perfected by years of practice.

Marie looked back over her shoulder as she ran, and found that all sight of her smaller companion was gone. Marie shrugged and looked forward, only to just miss running into Gideon, who had turned back after discovering that the noise he had heard earlier was a mere hare.

Marie ducked and hurriedly dodged to the side, then ran as fast as she could up the road, with Gideon hot on her trail. She wiped a bead of perspiration off her forehead and raced forward even harder. Gideon was faster. Seeing the easy target, he sprang up the road after her, taking long strides. Soon he was three meters away. Two. One.

Gideon reached out and grabbed Marie's shoulder. Marie shrieked childishly and put in a last burst of energy. She wrenched herself from Gideon's grip, throwing him off balance for a moment. Marie took a sharp right turn. Then, before Gideon could follow her, she ducked behind a house and made a left turn, ending up in the same direction, paralell to that she had previously been headed, but traveling behind houses rather than out in the open.

Marie heard Gideon behind her, heard him pause before he turned right and then right again, away from her. Marie sank down onto the ground, exhausted. It was unusual that Marie should outrun Gideon, and she was sweating hard. Then she realized where Gideon was now running: toward Rosen. Rosen would not be expecting it. She could certainly outrun the warrior, but he would catch her by surprise. Marie looked back. There were plenty of hiding places for the idea she was thinking of, but Marie wished that the villagers were out in the roads as usual, not in the village center, where the celebrations were being held. Her idea would still work without them though.

Unexpectedly, she called out. "Rosen! Keep running! Jack and Lilly are right behind us! GO! GO! GO!" she screamed, hoping that Gideon would follow her encouragements to a fake Rosen, in the opposite direction her friend was really traveling, and ran until she spotted a small one-horse stable to the side of the road. Marie hid behind it, as silent as possible and hoping that if Gideon passed by, he wouldn't hear her panting. Marie held her breath, then let it go as she heard the tall warrior apprentice pass by just within a few meters of herself and run up the road and away from Rosen and the village center.

Sweating, Marie stood wearily and trudged down the hill, after waiting a few minutes to be sure that Gideon was gone. She'd learned that lesson.

"Hey." Rosen whispered to her, from off the track. Marie turned to the side and saw her friend standing in the shadows. "Thanks for that."

Marie shrugged and for the second time, joined her friend in the shadows. "It was nothing much. You would've done it." she said, and Rosen smiled mischievously.

"Maybe I would've." she replied. "And maybe I wouldn't have."

Marie laughed softly. There was no doubt that Rosen would do the same, but both girls appreciated a joke after the exciting day that they had been experienced. Of course, they enjoyed a joke in general.

They sneaked back to the front of Jenny's restraunt, where Jack and Lilly were talking ,waiting for them. Gideon joined the group a few minutes later, grubby and laughing. The five found that they were suddenly, and ragingly, hungry and conversing excitedly, left to go wash up for the feast in the square.


End file.
